


RA Fanfic Challenge Week 1: Hunt

by Timewormbloom



Category: Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan
Genre: Gen, Gilan Is Annoying When He Wants to Be, Hunting, RA Fanfic Challenge, like two word at the end, some language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-11
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:47:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22207375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Timewormbloom/pseuds/Timewormbloom
Summary: Apprentices are so much easier to deal with when they aren't tripping over their cloaks out of fear whenever they see you walk by. Gilan decided to take some unorthodox measures to try and settle them in. They needed extra food, anyways.
Relationships: Gilan & Halt O'Carrick, Gilan & Will Treaty, Halt O'Carrick & Will Treaty
Comments: 6
Kudos: 54
Collections: RA Fanfiction Challenge #1





	RA Fanfic Challenge Week 1: Hunt

**Notice**

**If you are reading this on the app Fanfic Pocket, I want you to know that this fic was stolen without my consent. The app creator stole every piece of writing on the app from Ao3. If you want to read this, or anything else I wrote, please do so on my[tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/timewormbloom) or my [ao3.](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Timewormbloom/works)**

* * *

In Gilan's personal opinion, the Gathering became so much more entertaining after he became Commandant. Now when he snuck up on people, he could say it was a test. And only Halt was allowed to yell at him about it. The only downside was that he was too busy handling everything to camp out in a tree like he used to.

Speaking of Halt, he and Will should have been here by now. One of the early arrivals had been tasked with telling Gilan when they got there, but there wasn't a sign of him.

"Ranger Gilan? Ranger Halt and Ranger Will are their way."

Speak of the devil. Gilan looked up from the paperwork that someone had dropped in front of him earlier. An apprentice he didn't recognize gawked at him.

"Thanks for passing the message along. You can get back to your mentor," Gilan called with a smile. The apprentice made an aborted movement that Gilan recognized as the beginning of a bow and scurried out. Another castle kid, maybe? Gilan had done the same thing to Halt when he'd first started his training.

"They're always so skittish the first year," Gilan lamented.

\--

It didn't take long to find them. Will tended to draw attention, and Halt never set up camp far from his former apprentice. The former was hunched over a lit campfire. Halt's tent was set up, but the man himself was nowhere to be seen.

Will didn't appear to have noticed him yet, but Gilan knew they probably sensed him coming a mile away. Will was just like that.

But it was worth a try. Gilan snuck around the back of the tent and carefully approached Will from behind.

"Are you going to make soup again this year?" Gilan questioned suddenly. But Will didn't jump like he was hoping, just turned around handed Gilan an empty bucket.

"I thought your goal was to sneak up on Halt?" Will gave him a playful smile. "You're going to make him jealous."

"I know a losing battle when I see one. And I need to make sure you're up to standard," Gilan teased back.

"I remember my first Gathering. I was so nervous until you tried to get the drop on Halt." Will got a sentimental smile on his face. "Something about seeing you act like an idiot calmed me down some."

Gilan's mind flashed back to the new apprentice. The biggest issue with any new apprentice was trying to make them comfortable enough to work with anyone who wasn't their mentor.

"I would find that insulting if you hadn't given me a good idea."

"...why would calling you an idiot give you an idea?"

\--

"All right! I hope you guys don't mind being my guinea pigs today!" Gilan looked out at the small group of first-year apprentices. They were all clumped together in front of the tent that served as the command center during Gatherings.

"If you'll look to your right, you'll see a large pile hunting gear. All of the items there are either necessary camping items or things that could be constructed out of ordinary materials." Gilan gave them a moment to eye the large pile. It was mostly made of snares and ropes, but some metal gleamed through the cracks.

"Are we going hunting?" One of the braver apprentices raised his hand slightly while he asked the question. The other apprentices, who had figured that out by then, began to mutter. From what Gilan heard, most of them were worried about their lack of hunting knowledge.

"Yep! But don't worry about not knowing how to hunt, this exercise is to develop a totally different skill. Now, you have until the end of the day. Feel free to do whatever gets the job done, but stay safe. Any questions?"

"Is there a minimum for how much we have to catch?" Another apprentice piped out from the back, also raising their hand slightly.

"Well, let's just say that dinner tonight will be much less enjoyable." Gilan gave them a wink. Several apprentices seemed to grow several shades paler in an instant.

"If there are no other questions, I'll see you lot later today!" Gilan cheered and gestured to the supply pile. He smiled to himself as they scrambled towards the gear.

\--

"I feel like that kid's going to trap himself," Gilan voiced to his companion. They were all perched on a high tree watching the apprentices fumble with the nets.

Will squinted at him for a second before nodding.

"Yeah, his feet are way too close to the snare," Will replied. "I'm going to get a closer look."

Gilan grunted in response as Will expertly scaled down the tree trunk and vanished into the foliage. Gilan glanced around the clearing. The apprentices were starting to spread out a bit more, and the Rangers watching from the trees followed at a distance. Sure, Gilan had an ulterior motive. But a training opportunity is still an opportunity.

A small movement drew Gilan's eye. Halt was about a dozen meters away from him and moving fast, Gilan scooted over to make room. Halt silently dropped down next to him and took a seat.

"Is there a reason for all of this? Hunting isn't usually taught until the second year, at least," Halt questioned casually.

"Just a little something to loosen them up a bit. New recruits are always so formal and uptight," Gilan replied. "You ask them something, and they fall over themselves. Then nothing gets done because they're still so hung up on the idea of rank. It's exhausting."

"And organizing an entire hunt is less exhausting?" Halt quipped.

"You'll see tonight," Gilan teased. He stood up and cracked his joints. "You have it from here?"

Halt nodded. "It's just sitting in a tree. I'll handle it."

Gilan gave him a grateful smile as he started his descent down the tree. Paperwork waited for no one.

\--

Gilan watched with barely hidden glee as the apprentices slowly staggered into the central area with their game. There wasn't anything too impressive, but nothing of concern either. Overall, it was pretty good for the first years. He rose from his place next to the fire and approached the kids.

"Welcome back! Put your hauls over there with Will and enjoy the meal when it's ready," Gilan instructed. Will, and a few others, had volunteered for cooking duty. He gave a warm wave.

"Who doesn't know how to skin their catch?" Will gathered the apprentices around him and begun chatting.

\--

"I was panicking the entire time."

"Me too! Do you really think he would have made us skip dinner if we didn't get enough?"

"Who knows with the Commandant. He's kinda intimidating, to be honest."

Gilan snorted into his coffee as the apprentices talked. Unbeknownst to them, he was sitting a mere meter away. It was about time to blow the door open on his little charade.

"I have an announcement, everyone!" Gilan called for attention as he stood up. Conversations fell quiet as everyone looked at Gilan. The apprentices, in particular, had their eyes bolted on him.

"Some of you may have been wondering about the...unorthadox training today and its purpose." Gilan paused to take another sip of coffee. "There was none. There wasn't even going to be a punishment for underperforming. That's all!"

He sat down with a smug look as people began talking again. The other Rangers rolled their eyes and went back to their meals, but the apprentices were gobsmacked.

"That was all for nothing! I nearly tied myself up for no reason!" The apprentice that Gilan had been watching earlier stood up. Several of his peers tugged on his clothes to try and get him to sit back down.

"Yep!" Gilan returned pleasantly. The apprentice stopped his march over and just stared at him.

"Why on earth would you do that!" He cried out. Several other people nodded in agreement.

"Well, there was a purpose. It just wasn't tied to the hunting at all. We just had less meat than expected, and I saw an opportunity." Gilan stood once again and made his way to the outraged group.

"You guys are too stiff around your fellow rangers. And a very credible source told me that seeing me act more human might help," Gilan told them.

"That's not the word I used, but sure," Will called out from beside the spot Gilan had just vacated.

"I don't understand? What does that have to do with this?" The kid asked.

"Gilan is a dramatic little bitch, and the sooner you start treating him like one, the better off you'll be." Halt finally decided to add his two cents to the mix.

"Close enough!" Gilan declared. "Listen, I don't want you kids to fear me. So I designed this little scenario to stir up some emotions. Does anyone have anything to say about all of this?"

"Fuck you."

"Now that's the spirit!"

**Author's Note:**

> The prompt for this week was hunt. I had some ideas for angstier fics, but this one seemed like the most fun to write. I hope you enjoyed! And thank you Aseikh for putting this whole thing together.


End file.
